Empty Arms
by Reaper of Heroes
Summary: Annabeth is falling. Plunging into the darkness of Tartarus; and the worst part is that she has no one to hold on to. Starting near the end of mark of Athena.
1. Empty Arms

**What up Fanfiction, it's Reaper of Heroes here. This is a story idea I found on Ifunny, which was a picture of a Tumblr post for a fanfiction idea. I decided that I liked it enough to write it. Starting during the end of Mark of Athena. So I'm saying this now, please do not kill me. Enjoy.**

 **I do not own Percy Jackson, or any of the content published within any of the books published by Rick Riordan. And "…" means break.**

 _"We're together."_

Percy's words echoed like a solemn church bell in Annabeth's head as she fell towards the heartless pit that was Tartarus. She felt the cold wind scrapping against her skin, the pain in her ankle, and an emptiness in her arms where Percy should have been.

…

Percy was too stunned to think, let alone move. He was lying on the cracking ground of Arachne's chamber, his eyes glued to the darkness that had swallowed up his girlfriend.

"Annabeth," he whispered, clenching his outstretched hand into a fist. Hazel, knowing exactly what Percy would do, reacted.

"Frank," she called, turning to her eagle formed boyfriend, pointing at Percy, "Grab him!"

"Annabeth!" Percy cried out, scrambling for the edge. Frank, swooping in from over head, landed on top of Percy as a pig, pinning him to the ground.

"Get off me Zhang!" Percy roared, twisting and contorting his body until he freed his arms, "get off!" He pushed himself up, knocking piggy Frank off. Frank quickly changed back to himself and leaped on top of Percy.

"I can't let you do this Percy, I'm sorry." Frank fought to pin Percy back to ground, placing him in a headlock.

"I have to," he shouted whilst still clawing for the edge, his voice quivering slightly, "It's my fault," Percy's voice was softening as tears welled up in his eyes. "I couldn't save her," Percy sobbed, finally breaking down in tears of anguish. He couldn't save her. He had let the girl he loved quite literally slip through his finger tips. He could still see the horrified expression in her grey eyes as her hand slipped through his; that moment she realized he was not going to be her hero.

"Percy, you flinging yourself down there won't help anyone," Hazel consoled. "Right Nico?" She looked over questioningly to her brother. He just gave her a sad look, letting her know that while she was right, he did not want to say why.

"Ok then," Percy croaked, slowly standing up after Frank got off him. In a lightning quick move Percy attempted to bolt towards the pit.

"No!" Nico shouted as he dove forward and grabbed Percy's arm while Hazel followed suit and took hold of the other one. "You cannot dive down there."

"And why not?" Percy cried out, fighting the tears as much as he was Hazel and Nico, who slowly dragged him back away from the crevice. "I love her! I have to go and save her! Why can't you just let me go after her?"

"Because that pit leads to Tartarus," Nico whispered, a dark look shading his face. Percy redoubled his fight for freedom, breaking out of Nico's grasp only to have Frank take his place.

"Annabeth!" he screamed. A water pipe erupted from behind them, the ensuing current sweeping Hazel off of him.

"Jackson, stop," Jason shouted, flying down from the Argo II and grabbing Percy around the waist. "Frank, help me get him on board." Frank turned into a Pterodactyl and grabbed Percy by the shoulders, whilst Jason acted like a straight jacket to prevent thrashing and the use of a sword. The whole time Percy was doing everything in his power to escape, twisting, turning, and kicking; all while calling Annabeth's name in complete agony. Pipes began to burst every where around the Argo II, creating geysers with a purpose; the jets of water trying to blast Frank out of the sky. Frank nearly plummeted after a direct hit to his wing, but Jason was able to will the wind to hold them up.

"Coach," Piper yelled, "We have something for you to hit."

"With the ballista?" Hedge asked excitedly, readying his next projectile.

"No, we need you to knock Percy out."

"With pleasure, he needs to shut up," Hedge said gleefully, grabbing his branch. He galloped over to where Frank was landing, readying his swing. "Batters up." With a loud crack Percy stopped moving, and the pipes stopped bursting.

"Jeez coach, did you kill him?" Leo asked.

"Valdez, you know darn well that I didn't," Coach Hedge said indignantly, while not so subtly checking Percy's pulse.

"What should we do with him now?" Piper asked, Percy's limp form lying in front of her.

"Chain him in his room before he wakes," Nico said coldly.

"We don't need to chain him up, it's not right," Frank protested. "We're away from the pit; he can't just jump back in."

"Trust me, when I say we need to chain him up; it's for our safety, not his," Nico said so threateningly that Frank seemed to revert back to his chubby self in fear.

"I'm on it," Leo volunteered. "Jason, help me carry him?"

"Sure." Jason picked up Percy and followed Leo down into the depths of the ship.

"Now what," Piper asked worriedly, looking more at Nico than anyone else.

"Now," Nico began, closing his eyes, "we wait, and pray to the gods Percy doesn't destroy everything in his path trying to save Annabeth."

 **That's it. The first chapter, and I hope none of you are plotting my death. I'm planning on trying to keep this under 8 chapters, just because if I let it get any longer I might not end up finishing it. The rest of the chapters will be much loner, I always seem to write short first chapters. Reviews and welcomed and encourage, whether it be a flame from Tartarus, or constructive criticism, I love it all. A special thanks to TheWhittiePhantom who betad this for me. They are excellent writers and have a fantastic collaboration account. Until next time**

 **Reaper of Heroes out.**


	2. With a Smile

**Well for me this is a pretty quick update, usually takes me two weeks. But I really like this story, so here's the next chapter. All disclaimers apply.**

Annabeth had run out of tears. She'd cried for hours after she fell, maybe even days; time was impossible to tell while she fell.

"Nine days," she whispered to herself, remembering that Hesiod had predicted it would take nine days to fall from earth to Tartarus. She hoped the old poet was right. She didn't want to die, and the longer she fell, the longer she lived. She closed her eyes, picturing her and Percy at Camp Half-Blood kissing in the lake. She had thought maybe, maybe they had beaten the Fates and could live a somewhat normal life. Of course they hadn't, because after all, the Greeks invented tragedy. Annabeth opened her eyes and felt like someone had placed her heart under steamroller. She cursed the Fates, Athena, and every dam god that had ever screwed with her and Percy's lives, because even now, when she was at her lowest, they had found something else to take away from her.

"I love you Percy," she mumbled.

…

"Oh gods," Nico whispered, a pain spiking in his stomach. He doubled over, wincing more at what had happened that the stabbing sensation in his stomach.

"What is it Nico?" Percy asked, his voice devoid of life. He had seemed completely dead the past few days, lying in bed with minimal movement or sleep, his appearance becoming more haggard with each day. But the scariest part, at least to Nico, was the loss of light in his eyes. The lose of hope.

"Nothing," Nico lied. "I'm still weak from the twins, that's all." That definitely wasn't all, but he couldn't tell Percy. Not unless he wanted to kill what was left of Percy's soul. "I'm just going to go get some water." He needed to talk to the others, because he had a plan.

…

"Are you serious?" Piper asked, completely bewildered by what Nico was proposing.

"Look, it could work," Nico insisted. "We need to get past the mountains to Epirus and, let's face it, this would make Percy destructive enough to get us past the mountain gods that keep chucking boulders at us each time we try to cross."

"It's cruel and wrong, Nico," Jason said, staring Nico down. "How could you be so heartless?" Nico stared right back at Jason, his gaze unwavering.

"Because that's how we need Percy to be if we're going to defeat Gaea. Do you really think he is in any shape to fight her? Hell, do you think he could fight anybody right now?" Nico's words hit the others like an anvil, not just because they were loaded, but because they were true. "He's dead inside. He has no strength, no will to live let alone fight, and no hope. This is our only option." Jason just stared at the floor, unable to meet anyone's eyes.

"But what if it doesn't work?" Piper asked, her voice quiet. "I know love can make someone violent, but that's just one outcome."

"What else could happen?" Hazel croaked, peeking her bleary eyes up from Frank's chest. She cared the most about her friends, and Nico's initial news hadn't done her any favors.

"It could destroy whatever will to live Percy has left." Hazel buried her face back into Frank's purple shirt. He held her tight, tears slowly sliding down his face.

"We should just let Percy be," Frank insisted. "He's been through enough."

"Do we have any other choice?" Nico demanded. "We need to get across the mountains, and I doubt even the gods could survive a Percy-sized wrath. Remember what happened when he woke the first time? He destroyed the Italian country side with mud slides, flash floods, and earthquakes. There's no way the mountain gods can stop up from crossing if Percy's blowing them up."

"You're only thinking about us," Jason countered. "We're not the only important people on the ship."

"Don't you care about Percy?" Piper asked. It took every ounce of control in Nico's body to not blush.

"Of course I do; but if we don't stop Gaea then it doesn't matter who you care about, because everyone will be dead."

"What a happy note to walk in on," Leo announced, strolling into the dining room. "Sorry I'm late, but I had to keep Coach Hedge from using the ship like a battering-ram on the mountains. What'd I miss?"

"Annabeth is dead," Nico told him.

"Oh." The smile that seemed more or less perpetual on Leo's face left. "How do you…?"

"It's a son of Hades thing," Nico explained. "I feel when people die, and the closer I am with them, the more it hurts."

"And now he wants to tell Percy," Piper accused, glaring at Nico.

"Do you want to get us killed?" Leo asked in disbelief. "He destroyed enough when he thought he had just lost her, and now you want to tell him she's dead? You must have a death wish."

"That destruction is exactly why I want to tell him."

"That makes no sense."

"He thinks that Percy will direct it at the mountain gods, allowing us to cross with ease," Jason explained to Leo. "It's completely ludicrous, right?"

"Well, not really," Leo admitted, the gears of contemplation turning in his head.

"You cannot seriously be considering this," Frank interjected.

"It makes sense though," Leo reasoned. "We tell Percy that all this is Gaea's fault, say that the mountain gods are keeping us from her, and then Percy does the rest."

"Leo, that's horrible!" Piper exclaimed, disgust spreading across her face.

"But it's the only way we can easily cross the mountains," Nico reasserted, glad to have someone else support his plan.

"Besides, we have to tell him anyways," Leo added.

" _No, we don't!_ " Frank slammed his fist on the table, causing the others to jump. "The last time we angered him, he hurt Hazel. There's no telling what this will do to him, and that's not a risk we should take." He glared at the others, pulling Hazel in tighter to him.

"But would not telling him the woman he loves is dead be fair to him?" Leo questioned. Frank dropped his gaze, knowing the answer.

"No, it wouldn't," Piper mumbled, hanging her head in defeat.

"Fine," Jason spat, unhappy with the decision. "But we have to unchain him and tell him the right way. Kindly, like a friend."

"Fine," Nico agreed, knowing this was the best compromise he would get. He started for the door, but Leo put a hand on his shoulder.

"Wait until morning to tell him."

"Why," Nico asked, confused.

"To save him the nightmares," Leo said softly, "at least for one night." Nico nodded, completely understanding. When he had lost his sister, well, he hadn't ever really made up for the loss of sleep.

…

Percy lay in bed, the cool celestial bronze chains barely noticeable anymore. He'd grown accustomed to the dark. That's where most of his thoughts had been since they had left Rome. He had no real light in his life anymore. It was like Annabeth's blond hair had been the light and guide of his life, and without her there to with him, he was left lost and alone.

"Hey Percy." He turned his head to see Piper in the doorway holding a plate of food. "I brought you dinner." She set the plate down on the side table. It was blue pancakes with orange juice, one of his favorite meals of all time.

"Not hungry," he answered monotonously, just staring at the ceiling with his dead green eyes.

"Percy, you need to eat," Piper urged, yanking Percy to a sitting position. "You haven't eaten since we left Rome. You need your strength."

"What's the point," he shouted, finally turning his head to look at her. "Annabeth it gone, we need to somehow close the doors on the Tartarus side, and we still haven't made it to Epirus. For what in the gods names do I need my strength for?" Piper pursed her lips, knowing exactly what he needed his strength for. But she couldn't say anything, not yet.

"Exactly," Percy stated, showing emotion for the first time in days. It might have been anger, but Piper was glad he was showing something.

"Well I'm going to leave the plate here, and when you realize you're hungry, you can eat." Piper started to walk out of the room.

"Wait, Piper," Percy called after her. She stopped and turned to look at him. He was no longer had that greatness about him, that air of confidence and hope that used to surround him. Now he just seemed ghostly. A faded, torn, distorted picture of what he once was. "I'm sorry, ok. I shouldn't have yelled at you. I'm just so, so, so…" He couldn't finish his sentence without breaking down in tears.

"Shhh, it's ok," Piper consoled, sitting down beside Percy. "I get it. When I lost my dad, I was devastated. I didn't know what to do. But I pulled through it with help from my friends, and so can you."

"Do you think Annabeth can survive Tartarus?" Piper let her heart freeze, because it had to be cold in order to save Percy's, at least for a night.

"I honestly don't know Percy," she lied, feeling like snakes were crawling over her skin. "But if my dad can survive a giant, then Annabeth at least has a chance in Tartarus." Percy smiled, and Piper felt her heart shatter like glass. She felt like the most despicable person alive because she had just built Percy up slightly only to smash him into a million more pieces.

"Thanks Piper," he said, wiping the tears from his eyes. "You really are one of my best friends."

"Anytime Percy." Piper put on a plastic smile as she left the room. Once out of sight she let the tears fall. She had just set Percy up for the most heart-wrenching moment of his life, and had done all of it with a smile on her face.

 **Hope you all enjoyed the chapter, it was a lot of fun to write. The next update probably won't come as quickly, but it will come. Again, thanks to TheWhittiePhantom for being my beta. They're two great writers, and if you like The Flash or Arrow, definitely check out their account. Until next time**

 **Reaper of Heroes out.**


	3. Bulletproof Heart

**Another chapter finished, and quite quickly. If only I could do the same thing with homework. Ah well, what you gonna do. All disclaimers apply, and hope you enjoy.**

"Percy," Piper whispered timidly. She could only make out a faint outline of him huddled inside a stable.

"Leave me alone," he threatened hoarsely, refusing to look at her.

"Perc."

"I said leave me alone!" Percy roared, giving Piper a look of utter hatred.

"I'm sor-"

"Don't say it," he growled, sounding like some primal beast."Don't even think it. You lied to me, Piper. You lied to me about Annabeth!" He spat, his words oozing with venom. Piper was terrified. This was a side of Percy she never knew existed. That dark part of him that he kept locked away in the back of his mind like a caged beast, and now it was free.

"I had to, please understand that," Piper pleaded.

"You don't have to do anything," Percy hissed, rising to face her. "You didn't have to lie to me." He stalked towards her, the chains around his ankles scrapping against the stable floor. "You didn't have to let Nico use me like some tool that can be thrown aside." His voice was cold yet calm, cutting her like a razor blade. He kept towards her, reaching his hand in his pocket as she backed away. She was trembling, fearing what he might do to her. "You don't have to stay here, trying to make up for something that can never be forgiven." She backed all the way to the Athena Parthenos, which filled most of the room, feeling it's power humming inside it. Yet when she looked into Percy's blazing green eyes, filled with so much hate, the statue seemed to go quiet. Percy pulled riptide from his pocket and extended it, raising it to Piper's throat. "And if you don't leave my sight, you don't have to keep living.

…

Piper ran into the meeting hall bawling, Jason meeting her halfway. Wrapping her in a warm hug he kissed her forehead.

"Shhh," he consoled, running his hand through her hair. "I got you. What happened?"

"Perc, Perc, Percy," Piper choked, trying to force the words out.

"Percy threatened to kill her," Nico announced, appearing out of the shadows. "I was watching them in case Percy got violent, and, well, he did."

"He what?" Jason asked, anger rising in his voice. "Pipes, is this true?" She nodded.

"Jason, sit, before you do anything stupid," Leo warned, pulling a chair out for him and Piper.

"The only person who did something stupid was Jackson when he threatened my girlfriend!" Jason shouted, starting for the door.

"And you will be just as guilty of doing something stupid if you don't sit down Grace," Coach Hedge said, hefting his stick onto his shoulder. "Trust an old goat when he says to sit and cool off. The only type of body counts we need are monstrous ones."

"Hedge," Leo said "That was probably the wisest thing I have ever heard you say."

"What are you talking about Valdez?" the Sayter protested. "You need to pay attention more, I'm full of wisdom. I spout it all the time."

"The point of this meeting," Nico interrupted, mentally counting to ten, "is to figure out what to do with Percy now that we've crossed the mountains. His anger got us across-"

"Along with putting both Frank and Hazel in the infirmary," Jason reminded, still calming down from his previous outburst.

"Right, along with that," Nico admitted. "Now he's a liability, a hazard."

"Why are you treating him like a tool?" Piper glanced up to glare at the son of death, remembering what Percy had said while threatening her. "Because that is exactly what you're doing to him. That's exactly what he feels like you did, like you used him like any common object and then tossed him aside as if he had no feelings."

"Because we can't afford to treat him like he's a person,' Nico answered simply.

"Dude, that's harsh," Leo said, shaking his head in disapproval.

"Why not?" Jason asked, staring Nico down.

"We need to close the gates in order to stop Gaea. The only way to do that is to get to the-"

"Bullshit." Jason glowered at Nico. "That is bullshit and you know it. Not only do you know it, but we know it, so don't insult our intelligence. Why can't we afford to treat him like a person?"

"Because then he will heal like a normal person," Nico answered. "If he heals like a person it will take forever. He will have to mourn and grieve, before beginning the painstakingly slow ascent from darkness back to being a somewhat functional person. And even then, there will always be a part of him that will hurt. There will always be that part of him that will never let go, never forgive himself. "Trust me." Nico whispered, "I know exactly what that feels like."

"That still doesn't answer the question."

"The reason we want to treat him like he is a machine Jason," Nico snapped irritably, "Is so, hopefully, we can get him to harden up. To develop a bulletproof heart. That way, not only is the healing faster, but he won't care anymore. He'll push it to the very back of his mind, and the only time it'll bother him is in is dreams. That way, he'll be ready to take on Gaea."

"So you want him to be cold and unfeeling like you," Jason summed up.

"I didn't say unfeeling, just suppressed feelings."

"This is why I hate emotions," Leo muttered, spinning in his chair.

"Don't worry Leo, Percy will be a machine soon enough," Jason spat.

"I won't hurt him again," Piper declared softly. "Not after tonight. I just can't. He is my friend, and I've already hurt him enough. Whatever you plan on doing, leave me out of it."

"Me too," Jason agreed. "I have had enough of this madness." The couple walked out of the room together, leaving the rest of them in silence.

"Leo," Nico said, his scratchy voice shattering the silence. "What are we going to do now?" Leo sighed, hating the fact that he could follow the Son of Hades logic in all of this.

"I honestly don't know Nico. You have royally pissed off Superman and Beauty Queen. I doubt Hazel or Frank will help you now, and we have a murderous sounding Percy locked in the pegasus stables. I think the best option is to give Percy something to fight."

"Something to fight," Nico asked.

"You know," Leo made a small fire in his hands. "He's kinda like a fire right now. He's all pent up with anger, he has a lot of fuel, and is burning real hot. Well, we have two options. Let him burn through all his fuel by himself; in other words get rid of his anger slowly by let him stew and simmer in his own hate and misery. That's door number one."

"So I'm guessing door number two is let him fight."

"Bingo," Leo said, pretending to shoot an invisible enemy with a finger gun. "We let him get rid of all that anger in one go. Then he's empty, no fuel left, and you can do whatever you need to do to get him to go senior roboto."

"That could actually work," Nico said slowly. "That was a really good idea Leo."

"Thanks, most of my ideas are," Leo replied not so humbly.

"Shut up Valdez," Coach Hedge barked, causing the two boys to jump in their seats. "Until you invent an endless bottle of Gatorade, you aren't as smart as you think you are."

"Jeez coach," Leo gasped, "I didn't even realize you were still here. I figured you'd be off watching your kung-fu movies."

"Well, that's what I'd like to be doing," the goatman retorted. "But this meeting is deciding the well-being of a demigod I'm supposed to be protecting, so I figured I'd stick around. And can I say I really don't like any part of this plan except where we fight stuff."

"Then why have you stayed quiet this whole time," Nico asked.

"Because I can only give you two advice at this point, because you are both old enough to make decisions on your own."

"And because you really have no way of forcing us to do anything," Leo added.

"Shut up Valdez," Hedge growled. "Anyways, my advice is this; don't kill his heart to save his body, because that is probably the worst way to live a life." With that the Sayter left the room, his hoofs clicking down the hallway.

"He cares more than he lets on," Nico commented.

"Yeah, he really does want us to live," Leo feigned wiping a tear from his eye. "He must have more laps for us to run."

"But in all seriousness," Nico said, his signature dark look returning to his eyes. "He had a good point, I'm just worried."

"Worried about what," Leo asked, his face covered with worry.

"I'm worried..." Nico paused, closing his eyes before continuing. "I'm worried we won't be able to save his heart simply because it might not want to be saved."

 **There we go people, hope you liked it. The story just keeps flowing and coming to me, so I keep being able to write it quickly. Hopefully it stays like this until I finish it. Also, I have written another Percy Jackson story called God of Insanity. If you don't mind swearing, or murder, then you should go check it out. It's rated M for good reason, but if you enjoy this story, and murder, then it's for you. But anyways, one again thanks to TheWhittiePhantom for being my beta, love you guys. So yeah, hope you guys aren't tired of crying, or murder, because there's plenty more coming. Until then**

 **Reaper of Heroes out.**


End file.
